WINNIPEG, MB, May. 4, 2012, from Troy Media – Hip and knee replacement surgeries are among the most cost effective medical interventions developed, with the result that a vast majority of patients enjoy a greatly improved quality of life.

They are also among the most popular surgeries. You might be surprised to learn that Canada’s yearly 75,000 joint replacements, at an estimated $15 000 each, cost the public health system about $1.125 billion annually – not an insignificant amount.

Auto industry does it better

The expenditures don’t end there: in the first year following elective hip or knee replacement surgery, hospitalization usage can increase by as much as 50 per cent. In the 15 years following surgery, about 10 per cent of hip and knee replacements have to be redone due to wear, dislocation, infection and other problems.

So you might also be surprised to learn that this billion dollar a year industry – with follow up expenditures – has few or poor mechanisms for implant monitoring and assessment. There is no systematized mechanism in place to follow the clinical track record of new implants that come on the market, there is still difficulty predicting who will do well (or poorly) with surgery, and there is little ability to quickly identify and recall poorly performing implants.

We know this can, and should, be done. After all, the automotive industry already does a pretty good job at this.

A similar quality loop does not exist for hip and knee replacement implants. And it should.

At present, new implants are generally tested by manufacturers using “in-house” laboratory facilities, with the results being submitted to regulatory bodies as part of a process that largely depends on the new implant being similar enough to an old implant that clinical testing isn’t required for approval.

Implant costs, while generally low in Canada overall, can vary from hospital to hospital, and region to region, and purchasing agreements typically forbid the sharing of price information. Information on a surgeon’s or hospital’s joint replacement surgery outcomes typically do not exist, are not accessible, or do not exist in a format that is meaningful to a patient or a surgeon.

What little data that exists on the clinical outcome and survivalship of a particular hip or knee replacement device typically comes from small studies conducted in highly specialized centres where one would expect above average outcomes, or from large national registries (outside of Canada) that track only the longevity of the device.

If a problem is discovered with a particular hip or knee replacement implant, identifying and contacting patients is usually an error prone process of manually reviewing hospital charts one by one. This leaves patients and surgeons vulnerable.

These issues – which can cost the public health system untold amounts, and affect patient quality of life – can all be addressed.

Regulatory bodies such as Health Canada and the FDA can require independent wear testing of new implants, along with clinical data from properly constructed trials to ensure at least clinical equivalency to current implants.

All hospitals in Canada should submit their hip and knee replacement data to the Canadian Joint Replacement Registry (CJRR) so that the longevity of the various types of implants used in Canada can be monitored. This will assist greatly in identifying both superior and inferior implants in a timely fashion, facilitate the identification of patients who may have received a recalled implant, and provide information on how provider and patient characteristics affect outcome.

Ontario has made CJRR participation mandatory, BC and Manitoba are looking to follow suit – the rest of the provinces need to get on board.

Coordination key

Implant cost information also needs to be more transparent; prices should not vary by hospital nor by manufacturer for similar designs. Finally, hospitals and surgeons need to ensure that good quality data on the care they provide is routinely collected, and that this data is incorporated into ongoing quality improvement. This has started in various locations across Canada, but needs to be expanded. The CJRR has started producing region and hospital specific reports, but these need to be strengthened through routine, mandatory data collection across Canada.

Hip and knee replacements are amongst the most successful modern medical interventions developed. With a bit of coordinated effort, we can continue to improve the quality and accessibility for all Canadians.

Eric Bohm is an expert advisor with EvidenceNetwork.ca and an Orthopaedic Surgeon with the Concordia Joint Replacement Group in Winnipeg Manitoba. He is also an associate professor at the University of Manitoba.

2 Comments

Hey Doug I am of the opinion that refsnuacirg sounds much more modern than replacement. It’s merely a tune-up, an upgrade if you will. And, there are a number of benefits to such a procedure: more attention at airport security, imposing threats in a robotic voice to misbehaving children, changing your name to Steve Austin, being able to run faster at 80 than when you were 35 the list goes on. The only negative I can think of is immediately demagnetizing your credit cards the first time you put your wallet in your pocket. Otherwise, you’re all good!Looking forward to following the blog and the stories of your adventurous new hip.best,chad

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